Geek Squad

I am borrowing my daughter's Chromebook for my work in Africa for the next several months. She bought it just a little more than three months ago. It was functioning fine... and then it wasn't. I woke up after charging it overnight to find that it would not power on.

Last night (Saturday), I took it to Best Buy from whom she purchased it as well as purchasing a 3-year warranty. After I explained what happened to it to the clerk at the Geek Squad, and showed him the receipt, he declared, "No problem. We will send it out for repair at no charge."

"Can I get it back within two weeks, though? I am leaving for three months' work in Africa on February 19, and I need it by then."

"We cannot expedite shipping."

"You can't? Or you won't? See, I think you can expedite shipping, and you should in this instance, because we bought an apparently defective computer and a warranty, and we deserve for you to make this happen."

"I can't," he reiterated, staring at his computer screen that was apparently showing what he was allowed to do. I wondered to myself why there was no one there who could attempt to fix it without it being sent out, this being the Geek Squad and all.

"I see, well, then, I guess the next step is to exchange it for one that works."

"I can't."

"Again, I think you can but you are choosing not to."

"I would like to be able to, I really would, but exchanges can only be made within 15 days of purchase."

"Not even for a computer under warranty that stops working after three months?"

"No. We can only try to repair it."

"Ok, please let us get your manager to give permission to override this policy in light of my unusual circumstance."

The manager approaches. Now, they are both staring at the computer screen, which I assume provides a corporate script for how to handle this.

Directing my comments to the manager, I explain the situation and ask what he can do.

"We can ship it out for repair, or you can buy a new one."

"Why would I spend money on a new one when this one is under warranty? If you have one here in the store, you can give me that one."

"I can't," he replied, pointing now to the computer screen to indicate that it was out of his hands.

"I think you can. I think you and I can put our heads together and figure out some solution that is better than either of those options." 

He considered this for a moment and then offered, "You could buy the new one and then return it when you come to get the repaired one."

"As I have explained, I will be in Africa for three months, so how do you propose I return the one I buy within the 15-day window?"

"Oh right. That won't work. Well, you don't have to buy one. I'm not making you buy one. That's just an alternative solution."

"It's a solution that is not a solution. So, may I please speak to your boss, Mr. BestBuy?"

"He left for the night and won't be back until Tuesday."

Now, I'm thinking, these are some pretty good jobs where managers don't have to manage and geeks don't have to geek.

At this point, the manager simply walks away without another word. I turn back to the clerk and, still staring at his screen, he offers, "I can send it out and it will be back by Feb. 23."

"I will be on the other side of the Atlantic."

I take my broken computer and walk away. 

At home, I go to the Chromebook website on our other computer and look up under 'support' how to fix this specific problem. There is a user chat with a solution. I try it. It works. The computer is fixed.

I cannot help but think how odd that the company policy did not allow for the geek to have tried this step before automatically shipping it out and unnecessarily spending the company's money. I wonder why the manager does not have the power to suggest that. Why does corporate policy not allow for the full range of human decision-making skills and problem solving that could save money and satisfy the customer? I also thought about how I am no computer geek, so does this mean that I can just as easily work at Best Buy's Geek Squad? 

I can, that is, but I won't.